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Martin Chalfie is promoting preprint archives for biological research papers that will make new results and findings accessible to a significantly bigger audience much faster.

Credit: exdez/iStock.com

Important questions that kept cropping up during the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting include what the future of research can and will look like and how the status quo can be improved. Beside the oft-mentioned political events and their influence on science, another major issue concerns an intrinsic problem: the publication machinery and the importance of the impact factor. Shortly before the meeting, a number of Nobel Laureates publicly criticised the current journal-ranking method. During the meeting, Martin Chalfie also expressed his view that publications should be assessed more on the basis of their factual quality and less on which journal they appear in. I asked him what he had in mind as an alternative and what steps, if any, he has taken. His solution is: ASAPbio.org – Accelerating Science and Publication in Biology.

ASAPbio is an advocacy group founded by Ron Vale – an initiative instigated by scientists for scientists it aims to make new discoveries within the life science available to a broad audience much faster than previously possible. Chalfie helped launched the initiative in early 2016 together with Harold Varmus, Daniel Colón-Ramos and Jessica Polka, now the director of ASAPbio. “We wanted to develop a preprint archive for biological research. There has been something similar in physics for at least a quarter of a century.” As soon as researchers are ready to share their work and findings with the world, Chalfie continues, they can upload their articles to a preprint archive, where it can then be read and commented on by other scientists as well as by the general public. The largest preprint server for life science-related articles is bioRxiv.

ASAPbio promotes the use of open access centralised and comprehensive repositories for all life sciences. “This changes the overall dynamics of the publication process,” Chalfie says. The conventional publication pathway looks quite different: A scientific paper is submitted to a suitable journal. In an initial step, one or more editors then decide whether the paper is appropriate material for the journal in question. If the editors give the go-ahead, the paper is passed on to several experts in the field. They then form a picture of the work and can, if they deem it necessary, reject the paper as deficient or request further experiments. In such cases, the authors have several months to make the requested changes before a final decision is made, which can still be negative even after suggested changes have been made. All in all, the decision-making process can take from several months to a year, and if the paper is ultimately rejected, the authors have to submit it afresh to another journal. As a result, not only the authors lose valuable time but also the research community and the public at large, who have no access to the new findings during the decision-making process. “By contrast, preprint archives make new discoveries and research advances immediately available to everyone – whether scientists or students – and they do so free of charge,” Chalfie says, summarising the advantages.

Moreover, each paper is automatically assigned a definite submission date which the authors can refer to should a similar work be published soon afterwards.

However, Chalfie, points out, “it’s not about publishing raw data at an early stage.” Instead, a manuscript should be uploaded to an archive platform at the same time as it is submitted to a journal. It is then revised in stages in response to feedback from the journal and comments submitted via the platform.

“During one of the first organisational meetings, we talked about how the established journals would be likely to react to such an initiative and these platforms. Fortunately, the major journals such as Science, Nature, the journals of professional societies and many others all support the idea of preprint archives and the general repository,” Chalfie explains. The journals have no problem with authors submitting their papers to them and uploading them to a platform simultaneously. Many journals even allow “joint submissions”, meaning that they ask authors whether they want to make their papers available on an archive server at the same time.

Another sign that this new pre-release system will catch on in the long term is the acceptance of such prearchived work as a criterion for grants, the allocation of project funds and similar selection procedures. “The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the NIH, the Wellcome Trust and many universities now consider papers in the preprint archive in their evaluation of applicants,” as Chalfie relates proudly.

Although the new preprint archives as well as the general repository for biological research are still in their infancy compared to the fields of physics, and they have yet to be discovered by many scientists, they have already been acknowledged and accepted by major research institutes and renowned journals. Therefore, advocacy groups such as ASAPBio offer an excellent opportunity to take the cumbersome publication process in the life sciences to a new direction and focus once again on the actual quality of research work instead of mere impact factors.

When Jean-Pierre Sauvage started his own research lab, he focused on developing copper catalysts that could absorb light and use that energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen gases. After characterising the shape of one of these catalysts, the focus of his research changed to that recognised by the 2016 Nobel Prize in chemistry: synthesising molecules with interlocking rings and knots.

The game-changing catalyst was a copper ion binding to the concave portions of two crescent-shaped phenanthroline molecules. Because of its binding geometry, the copper ion held the arcs in perpendicular planes. Sauvage realised that closing each crescent to form a loop would create a molecule with two interlocking rings, called a [2]catenane. “At that stage, we had to decide whether we would continue in the field of inorganic photochemistry, or be more adventurous and jump into a field we didn’t know so well,” Sauvage said. “We decided to jump.”

The field less familiar to him at that time is called chemical topology, and it has foundations in mathematics and biological molecules. Topology is the study of infinitely deformable objects. Mathematicians classify topological knots as identical if they have the same number of loops and crossings, even if their shapes appear drastically different. Topological knots can also be found in biological structures. Some bacteria have a loop of DNA, and two interlocking rings of nucleic acid can appear as an intermediate during cell replication. In viruses that infect bacteria, intertwined cyclic proteins can provide rigidity to their outer shells.

In 1961, H. L. Frisch and E. Wasserman, at Bell Labs, connected topology to the chemical world, publishing ideas to synthesise molecules with interlocking rings and knots. Three years later, Profs. Schill and Lüttringhaus synthesised the first molecule with two interlocking rings, in an elegant, but lengthy, process that built each ring of the [2]catenane sequentially.

About twenty years later, Sauvage recognised that his copper catalyst pre-assembled the interlocking portion of the catenane, providing a fast and efficient route to the simplest molecular chain. In 1983, he, along with Christiane Dietrich-Buchecker and J.P. Kintzinger, synthesised a [2]catenane in two steps, compared to the 15 steps needed in the previous synthesis. Sauvage says the researchers knew their work was novel, but they partly hid it in the literature, publishing in a lesser-read journal and writing the article in French. Although the paper remains one of the few French papers of his career, the concept of templating catenane synthesis has become a standard method in the field.

Over the next decade, Sauvage and his group synthesised and characterised molecules with more complex topologies, including a doubly-interlocking catenane and molecular trefoil knot with three loops and three crossings.

As the researchers continued to follow their interest in the challenge of making molecules with novel structures, they also developed an interest in molecular motion. In interlocking rings, for example, one ring can rotate around the other. With a reliable way to make a variety of interlocking molecules, researchers could then build new structures, experiment with ways to control the motion, and then convert that motion to work in molecular machines – advances achieved by Sauvage’s colleagues, co-laureates, and friends J. Fraser Stoddard and Bernard L. Feringa.

From the story of his research, Sauvage had four pieces of advice for the young scientists:

Novelty is the most important thing when choosing research, and he stressed the importance of working in a team, interacting with other scientists inside or outside your group. Moving to an unfamiliar field can be very beneficial, Sauvage said. And although that jump can be intimidating, he encouraged the young scientists to be self-confident: “Do not ask yourself whether you are good enough to tackle a new problem: Just do it!”

Interview with #LiNo17 young scientist Antonella Coccia

This interview is part of a series of interviews of the “Women in Research” blog that features young female scientists participating in the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, to increase the visibility of women in research (more information for and about women in science by “Women in Research” on Facebook and Twitter). Enjoy the interview with Antonella and get inspired.

Antonella Coccia, 22, from Argentina is an undergraduate student and researcher at University of Belgrano, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Antonella is working in biotechnology. More specifically, she is studying how to obtain Lysine (amino acid) through bacterial fermentation. Her country is a food producer and it is looking for more effective ways to feed cattle; however, Argentina doesn’t produce any amino acids (they are imported).

What inspired you to pursue a career in science/chemistry?

I was a very curious girl. I was always making my parents tired with the why’s, how’s and for what questions. My father noticed how passionate I got when I learned something new, especially when it was related to science, so he bought me a chemistry set for my birthday. I loved it. It was my first contact with science and I felt that that game satisfied my voracious curiosity. Later, I started high school in a science orientated school. Those years were of a lot of importance to decide my future career. I had the opportunity to visit the school chemistry laboratory for the first time, and it was love at first sight. I started to participate in every science fair, to show my experiments to other kids and to inspire them to join science orientated classes.

Who are your role models?

I do not think I have a single role model to follow. In the years that I have been involved in the sciences, I discovered many people and figures who have inspired me in many ways and taught me very valuable things. Like many girls interested in science, Marie Curie is a significant role model for me. I was impressed by how she could set her goals beyond what was known at that time. I admire her ability to build a family along with her scientific career, and how she succeeded in inspiring her daughters so much that one of them later received a Nobel Prize. Finding the balance between having a family and engaging in science is something that I’ve always admired. On the other hand, my parents are also a role model. They have shown me through their years of work how sacrifice and hard work pays off. They are also a major example of overcoming difficulties by believing in themselves. Other role models for me were my teachers, especially my current research director and professor Dr. Pablo Raul Castello who has shown me day by day that the possibilities are endless if one is inspired and passionate enough about his work.

I admire […] how she succeeded in inspiring her daughters so much that one of them later received a Nobel Prize.

How did you get to where you are in your career path?

When I finished high school, I decided to apply to universities in the United States. Therefore, I had to take the SATs but I felt that there was a great gap between my school and the contents of the exams. I had to be an autodidact and work hard to achieve my goal. I was accepted but I couldn’t start my studies abroad due to economic difficulties. I felt that everything had been in vain. Then I entered the University of Belgrano where I am currently studying for the third year of my chemistry major. I found that the knowledge that I had acquired and, moreover, the qualities as a student that I developed as well as the maturity I had gained, positioned me differently compared to the rest of my classmates. I took risks, I wasn’t afraid of that and I sought for what I thought my career needed. That’s how in the second year of my career I was already participating in an investigation in the university laboratory. Those experiences have shown me that sometimes things don’t go the way I want but everything that I’ve learned stays with me and makes a difference in future situations.

What is the coolest project you have worked on and why?

I think that the coolest project I’ve ever participated in is the one that I am part of right now. This project is very dear to me because it’s the first investigation that was entirely entrusted to me. I am working in Lysine production through bacterial fermentation. This is a well-known process around the world; however, we have a different approach and it already has intellectual property. I really like this project because it is applicable to my country’s industry and it could be the answer to the current dilemma of how to produce more and better food. Argentina is a food producer; however, it does not produce the required supplements to enrich the cattle food. Our project can provide those supplements making food production cheaper and creating an inexhaustible source of food enrichment.

What’s a time you felt immense pride in yourself/your work?

The first time I inoculated the medium with the lysine producer bacteria. I was very nervous and excited at the same time. I even texted my mom to tell her as a joke that my little babies were growing. Even though the formulation of the medium was the most important part, the bacterial growth was the most decisive stage. I was about to find out if the formulation was correct.

What is a “day in the life” of Antonella like?

So, a day in my life starts at 5:30 am when I get up and start to prepare to go to university. I take a bus and a subway which usually takes me an hour. Then I get to University and start my classes. I take classes until 13:00 hrs when it’s time to take a lunch break. At 14:00 hrs I start working at the laboratory, I check on the bacterial growth and the Lysine production. I answer some emails and work on some projects. When I come back home I try to go for a run or to take a gym class. I find it very relaxing. I always eat dinner with my family because it’s very important for me to save some time to share with them. At the end of the day, I study for my classes and complete course assignments.

sometimes things don’t go the way I want but everything that I’ve learned stays with me and makes a difference in future situations

What are you seeking to accomplish in your career?

Even though I am focusing on finishing my undergraduate studies, I’m looking forward to starting my postgraduate studies, I really want to get a doctorate degree. As for my research goals, it may sound cliché but I would really love to work on a project that causes an impact on society or that gives me the chance to leave something good to the world.

What do you like to do when you’re not doing research?

When I am not in the laboratory or taking classes I really enjoy going to food truck fairs with my mom or baking for my family. I also like taking dance classes and running because I end up very relaxed and with a clearer mind. Something that keeps me going is doing activities with friends, having a coffee or going for a walk – it’s always great to spend some time with them.

What advice do you have for other women interested in science/chemistry?

I think that the most important thing for a woman interested in science is never underestimating herself. There will be people that will discourage you or even yourself will, but it’s important to keep in mind why you are doing what you do. It happens to me sometimes that it feels like I haven’t achieved anything. Other times, I am really lost with my investigation or I get frustrated with grades after extended periods of study but I surround myself with people that really support me and remind me of how much I have achieved and how much I love what I do.

In your opinion, what will be the next great breakthrough in science/chemistry?

I don’t think there is a certain answer to this question but if you ask me what I hope will be the next breakthrough in science I would say that I wish a cure will be found for illnesses that cause many deaths around the world such as cancer, leukaemia or AIDS, to name just a few. I think that a lot of research is being done in those areas and it is probable that the next great breakthrough will go in that direction.

What should be done to increase the number of female scientists and female professors?

From my point of view, there should be more encouragement for little girls. It’s important to show the achievements of women in science through the media because it avoids the myth that there are not so many women involved in science careers. The young women should see that we are more and more female scientists every day, it’s the best way to inspire them. Another thing that I haven’t seen or heard (at least in my country), and I think could make an enormous difference, is offering science lab as an extracurricular activity. I particularly discovered my love for science when I experienced what it was like being in a laboratory and the endless opportunities that it represented.

Interview with #LiNo17 young scientist Julie L. Fenton

This interview is part of a series of interviews of the “Women in Research” blog that features young female scientists participating in the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, to increase the visibility of women in research (more information for and about women in science by “Women in Research” on Facebook and Twitter). Enjoy the interview with Julie and get inspired.

Julie L. Fenton, 25, from the United States of America is a Graduate Student & PhD Candidate in Chemistry at the Pennsylvania State University, US. She is working in inorganic/materials chemistry. Nanomaterials have garnered intense interest in the scientific community, due in part to their unique shape-, size-, and composition-dependent properties, and emerging technological applications that leverage these properties require nanomaterials with very specific architectures and well-defined characteristics. Colloidal synthetic methods are among the most effective for delivering high-quality inorganic nanomaterials with desirable properties in high yield. However, the complexities of solution-based chemistry limit the ability to predict and rationally target desired products, rendering some materials and morphologies of interest inaccessible. Her work has focused on developing new synthetic and post-synthetic modification strategies in order to produce inorganic nanomaterials with precise control over product morphology, elemental composition, and crystal structure in a variety of material systems. These advances allow them to access metastable materials, morphologic features, and/or complex heterostructures with desired physical and chemical properties, many of which are not amenable to previous synthetic methods.

What inspired you to pursue a career in science/chemistry?

I have always had an interest in problem solving and puzzles – I love a challenge, regardless of scale. When I came up against my first chemistry class in high school, thinking about the world on a molecular level intrigued me, and I was hooked. To me, the chemical discipline represented solving some of the most complex and intriguing problems in the world, except that the answer was previously unknown. This was exciting to me as a young person, and the passion only deepened through higher-level study of chemistry through college, and now well into graduate school.

Who are your role models?

I have been fortunate enough to benefit from a number of fantastic mentors and role models, scientific and otherwise, throughout my life. My first (and best) role models have been my parents. Through a strong work ethic coupled with the highest value placed on integrity and respect for others, they have demonstrated to me what success in life looks like (which is not specifically linked to career success). Though my parents, who are not scientists, don’t always understand exactly what it is that I’m doing on a day-to-day basis, they are supportive at every step, encouraging me to be the best version of myself in scientific pursuits, but reminding me that the world is larger than just science, and that it’s important to stay grounded in my personal values.

Academically, I am grateful to have benefitted from and been inspired by too many people to name in this discussion, so I will name just two: my current graduate research advisor, Dr. Raymond Schaak, and my first research advisor as an undergraduate, Dr. Richard Schaeffer. These two have been phenomenally encouraging to me, helping me to develop and to think creatively as a scientist, while giving me the space to work independently on projects that I have cared about. Beyond that, they have modelled how one can balance the demands of a career in chemistry with other priorities in life. Conversations with these two have helped me to think broadly about the world and my place in it, going far beyond the expectations I could have asked for from an academic advisor.

How did you get to where you are in your career path?

I grew up in rural Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA and did my undergraduate work in chemistry at Messiah College, a small school (~2800 undergraduates only) in Grantham, Pennsylvania, USA. During my second semester as an undergraduate, I began to do research for the first time… I was enthralled by the challenge of research on the cutting edge of science. Research gave me an opportunity to think creatively about the world and the ways in which it works, and my advisor (Richard Schaeffer) gave me ample space to explore and problem-solve independently.

I anticipate working toward developing mentoring programmes to help foster students’ interest in STEM fields at an early age

Like many aspiring U.S. scientists, I participated in a National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (NSF REU), between my third and fourth years of college. As a student coming from a small undergraduate institution, this was my first opportunity to do research full-time, working alongside graduate students and primarily research-active faculty members. As such, this experience was amongst the most formative of my young life as a chemist, igniting a passion for academic research and scientific problem solving on the highest level that will never be quenched. Unlike most undergraduate researchers, however, my REU was conducted at the Université de Strasbourg in Strasbourg, France, affording me the unique opportunity to live and to conduct research outside of the United States, where I have lived, worked, and learned for my entire life. Even though significant language and cultural barriers existed between the French research group and myself, we forged relationships and collaborations through the common language of chemistry. This is where I first understood and appreciated the international impact that work in science can have: increasingly, we are participating in an endeavour that transcends our national and cultural boundaries, aided by the ease of communication and collaboration. It was (and still is) incredibly exciting to me to contribute, in some small way, to something much greater than myself.

These experiences propelled me into graduate school, beginning in the summer of 2014, where I have been ever since, and will continue to motivate me as I move into the next stages of my career. I’m currently working towards my Ph.D. in materials/inorganic chemistry at the Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pennsylvania, USA under the direction of Ray Schaak.

What is the coolest project you have worked on and why?

I’m probably totally biased, but the coolest work that I have worked on is my current dissertation work. Although it’s really important to be able to control the way that atoms arrange themselves in solid-state materials (because the atomic arrangement, or crystal structure, dictates the properties), the typical high-temperature synthetic methods for making solid-state materials are often limited to obtaining only the most stable arrangements of atoms in a solid. By using a lower-temperature, solution-based cation exchange method, we can transform a performed material template into a material with targeted composition. Interestingly, these transformations can be accomplished with the retention of some qualities of the template material, including features of the original crystal structure, circumventing some of the primary difficulties encountered in traditional solid-state chemistry. Using this approach, we have been able to target and isolate some unusual crystal structures in a predictable fashion, which begins to point towards the ability to generalise these approaches for polymorphic structure targeting in solid-state chemistry.

I think the most exciting thing about chemistry (and science in general) is that the great breakthroughs can be serendipitous and unexpected

What’s a time you felt immense pride in yourself/your work?

In different ways, I have found pride in sharing my work with others. Outside of my lab or the community of solid-state chemists, there is something really exciting about communicating the major points of my science to non-technical audiences in a way that appeals to them (without oversimplifying the science behind it), in formal presentations and informal conversations. Additionally, I have found great satisfaction and pride in seeing some of my efforts come to fruition in published form. Getting to a paper is a grind – it represents many hours in lab and many, many failed experiments, significant data analysis and interpretation, as well as the actual time spent writing the manuscript and putting together figures and data in a way that communicates the significance more broadly. It is exhilarating to contribute to the scientific community, even in very small ways.

What is a “day in the life” of Julie like?

I’m a synthetic chemist, so the majority of my work-life time is spent in the hood or nearby in the lab, weighing powders, pipetting solvents, heating/degassing a reaction, injecting precursors or decomposition agents, or cleaning and working up reactions. I spend “down” time reading papers, chatting science with my lab mates or advisor, or getting other work done (at the beginning of my graduate career, this was class assignments or grading for my teaching assignments… lately, it’s writing!). If I’m not in the synthesis lab, you could probably find me in the Penn State Materials Characterization Lab using one of the transmission electron microscopes (TEM) to take a look at the morphology of my nanoparticle samples, to analyse their crystal structures (using selected-area electron diffraction or high-resolution TEM), or to assess their elemental composition using STEM-EDS (energy dispersive spectroscopy) mapping.

What are you seeking to accomplish in your career?

To merge my passion for chemistry and my desire to engage others in STEM, I plan to pursue an academic research career after completing my graduate work. As a young person, I had few female academic role models; as a professional, I anticipate working toward developing mentoring programmes to help foster students’ interest in STEM fields at an early age. I look forward to leveraging my career to help bridge the gap between technical and non-technical audiences and to increase scientific literacy at all levels of academia, politics and normal life. Thus far, I have observed and begun to appreciate the unique set of opportunities available to academic scientists: engagement with top-calibre colleagues, students and mentors, involvement with a built-in community of equally passionate researchers, opportunity to converse and collaborate across disciplines and institutions, and utilisation of cutting-edge instrumentation and laboratories. Leading scientists in top academic institutions enjoy the ideal setting for making discoveries, establishing meaningful collaborations and mentoring future generations of scientists. For an ambitious and creative scientist, academic research positions provide the latitude and flexibility to innovate, the environment to pursue individual research interests (sometimes several different ones), and the opportunity to truly impact the scientific world and the world at large.

What do you like to do when you’re not doing research?

I enjoy traveling to new places (or familiar ones), outdoor activities, reading, board games, and spending time with family and friends. I also make some attempts to cook, though I have found that synthetic skills in chemistry do not directly translate to cooking skills (although it feels like they should).

What advice do you have for other women interested in science/chemistry?

Although we live in a world of instant gratification and quick answers, progress in science is often quite slow. It requires a significant investment of time, energy and thought, and even with this discipline, projects stalling or hypotheses failing is inevitable in these disciplines. This can be discouraging to anyone, but particularly to young scientists. Eventually, progress is made: an interesting discovery, fresh eyes to interpret formerly frustrating results, or new ideas and hypotheses that can be tested and proven true, but this takes time. My advice is to keep pushing towards the goal of understanding, and to stay positive — try not to let temporary frustrations get in the way of that. I would encourage young women in particular to not be intimidated by male-dominated academic science. If you want it and are willing to work hard, you are capable of achieving every success in science.

In your opinion, what will be the next great breakthrough in science/chemistry?

I think the most exciting thing about chemistry (and science in general) is that the great breakthroughs can be serendipitous and unexpected – although we would like to know exactly where they will come from, we don’t and we shouldn’t expect to. As a materials chemist, however, I think some of the scientific discoveries with the potential for the greatest impact on society will come from the development of new materials. I expect that the next decade and beyond will give us numerous breakthroughs in materials for a wide variety of applications, particularly those important for solar energy harvesting, fuel cells, batteries, other electronics and beyond (perhaps for applications we haven’t even thought of yet).

We should continue to reach out to and encourage aspiring scientists as children and teens, and at the undergraduate level

What should be done to increase the number of female scientists and female professors?

This is a difficult question, and one that I think (rightly) is starting to be addressed at every level of academic training and careers. I think that we, as a community, are taking steps in the right direction towards an academy that looks more representative of broader society (including more women and other under-represented groups). While progress is good, this process will take time! 30, 40 and 50 years ago, the pool of trainees looked much different than it does today, which is still reflected in the way the academy (or even in high levels of scientific industry) looks today. I think it’s important not to do this artificially at the highest levels of science, but to build up to that slowly, over a period of time. We should continue to reach out to and encourage aspiring scientists as children and teens, and at the undergraduate level, and help to change the perception of what a scientist looks like and does. At the graduate level, mentorship is extremely important, as learning from the mistakes and triumphs of others who have gone before you is valuable for making informed decisions about your career (and basically everything else).

When Nobel Laureates come to Lindau, photographer Volker Steger presents each with a surprise task. One by one, he brings them to a desk with a blank white posterboard and a queue of chubby, colourful wax crayons. Then Steger asks: For what did you get your Nobel Prize?

Each laureate sketches his or her answer, following the only guidelines to make the sketch big and use multiple colors. After finishing and signing the picture, Steger photographs each laureate with his or her drawing. The whole process takes about 20 minutes.

This year he photographed three laureates: Tomas Lindahl, Bernard L. Feringa, and Jean-Pierre Sauvage. I accompanied Steger to his photo shoot with Sauvage at the Hotel Bad Schachen on Wednesday afternoon. Once Steger presented his challenge, we left Sauvage alone with the paper and crayons, listening for several minutes from the hallway to crayons clicking on the desk, a sound similar to that of chalk on a chalkboard.

Sauvage emerged from the room smiling and ready to explain each of his drawing’s three sections: the synthesis of a molecule with two interlocking rings called a [2]catenane, the synthesis of a more complicated molecular trefoil knot, and the contraction and expansion of a molecular muscle. Steger and I whisked Sauvage down the hall to a makeshift photo studio to continue the explanation.

Between shutter clicks, Steger asked Sauvage to demonstrate the molecular motion with his hands. I passed Sauvage a stool so he could sit down and prop his sketch against his leg, leaving his hands free to trace the twists of molecular knots.

In contrast to traditional posed portraits where a twinkling eye or smile hints at someone’s personality, the physicality in Steger’s portraits directly connects each laureate to his or her intellectual work. When Steger first imagined this project, titled Sketches of Science, he says: “I wanted to learn about each person and their work at the same time in a playful, fun way.” The idea worked right away.

In his photo, Sir Harold W. Kroto pretends to kick a buckyball colored like a soccer ball. When Anthony J. Leggett wanted to twist his arms to show the atomic arrangement that allows for superfluidity, he asked Steger to tape the sketch to his body.

Some laureates prefer words to pictures, diagrams and physical demonstration. Robert F. Curl, Jr. filled two sheets of paper with the story of his discovery, quoting his co-laureates and sketching diagrams of his experiments. Roald Hoffmann filled most of his posterboard with a poem titled “Orbitals and Sex.”

The sketches remain in Lindau under the care of the Foundation Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, and they may eventually be archived at the Nobel Museum in Sweden. All of the project’s photographs can be viewed in a gallery and downloaded as an e-book from the Lindau Mediatheque. The e-book also contains Steger’s notes from each shoot, revealing on the stories behind the sketches.

Sir Martin J. Evans’ second sketch – a mouse – pays homage to the lab animals needed for his Nobel-winning research. Martinus J. G. Veltman depicted a scientist as a person climbing a mountain just to see what’s on the other side. And Leon M. Lederman drew Nobel Laureates having a party, with a lady joining the group, hearts filling her speech bubble. “As I am later told by another laureate,” Steger wrote, “this is just what happened to Leon Lederman after he won his Nobel Prize!”

Over the past eight years, Steger has photographed almost 100 Laureates. The collection has been exhibited around Germany, and in Japan, Kuala Lumpur, and Russia. It will travel next to Australia for an exhibition from March to November 2018.

When Steger started this project, he had one question for himself: “Is there something that all the laureates have in common?” Now that Sketches of Science is nearing its end, he has an answer: “Yes – they all have a Nobel Prize and that’s it. They are a very diverse group of personalities.”

Interview with #LiNo17 young scientist Eva Maria Wara Alvarez Pari

This interview is part of a series of interviews of the “Women in Research” blog that features young female scientists participating in the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, to increase the visibility of women in research (more information for and about women in science by “Women in Research” on Facebook and Twitter). Enjoy the interview with Eva Maria Wara and get inspired.

Eva Maria Alvarez Pari, 23, from Bolivia is an undergraduate chemistry student doing her Master degree at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. Eva is in the first stage of her academic career. Nevertheless, she is deeply interested in organic chemistry applied to the medicine.

What inspired you to pursue a career in science/chemistry?

Well, I consider that question really anecdotal. During the elementary school I was close to failing one year of my studies because of mathematics. Nevertheless, in high school I have been immersed in science more and more. My first approach to chemistry was in 2007, when I started high school. I have been lucky to have an amazing woman as a chemistry teacher who has supported me in every stage of my academic life. She deeply motivated me. Nevertheless I made my first step, when one day I saw in the newspaper a competition that has been launched for high school students. I had a big desire to participate and I asked my teacher to train me for Chemistry Olympics competitions in my city. Although I have won a third place I didn’t feel any regret or depression. I was completely sure, I did my best. Since then I put my heart and soul into the chemistry. I have participated in some of my teacher’s lectures at her technical institute, where I gained my first experience working at lab under her supervision. Since mathematics at high school caught my attention by creating models to explain some natural phenomena, I decided to do a Bachelor degree in mathematics. Nevertheless, there was something missing in my life. Then I realised that if I couldn’t study chemistry I would probably have regrets later. So, I started my chemistry studies immediately. At the end, I have completed both careers. It was really hard to manage the schedules of my different subjects avoiding overlapping of the courses and arranging the transportation stuff to be on time to every single lecture. But when there is passion, everything is possible. Being motivated made it possible to complete both careers in five years; otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have done it without this driving force.

Who are your role models?

Definitely my professors have played a big role in my academic formation. I was fortunate to being surrounded by powerful women in chemistry. My chemistry teacher at school was a devoted person who dedicated her life and time to motivate students to pursue a scientific career. She supported me even outside the classroom. We were not teacher and student anymore, but we started to be two people learning from each other drawn by a shared passion to chemistry. During my undergraduate studies, two dedicated women were a continuous support to my scientific career. I feel admiration of their outstanding research projects and their role as women holding high positions in the university which is not common in my home country. They oriented me personally and academically, keeping my motivation to pursue an academic career. Certainly one of my strongest motivations is attributed to Marie Sklodowska-Curie, who gave the first step and opened to us the opportunities to be as equals to men in science.

I have made the best decision of my life and I don’t regret it at all.

Last but not least, my parents have always been concerned about my education and gave me all the facilities to tackle a scientific career. No expense was too great to give me the best education since I was at elementary school. They gave me freedom to decide what I wanted to become. Actually, they are supporting me in my master studies economically, and they even have plans to do so, too, for my PhD studies because they are concern about my deep love for Chemistry.

How did you get to where you are in your career path?

Nothing can be done without motivation and constant work. I realised at high school that to become a scientist involves many years of studies. But that is not everything. You must keep yourself in constant learning because science never sleeps. So, even knowing that, I have made the best decision of my life and I don’t regret it at all. Since high school I have set long and short goals to become a scientist, and it also meant to get a better education outside. I am always daydreaming because it keeps me motivated. Since my first day in Germany on October 1st, I have looked for many opportunities to encourage my scientific aspirations. As an anecdote, one day before the deadlines for the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting I have seen a publication on Facebook related to eight women who participated in the preliminary meeting. I didn’t miss the opportunity to apply immediately and because of that I arrived too late to my preliminary Master meeting in Erlangen. Of course, now I am really glad that this happened. The first obstacle I have faced took place, when I decided to apply for a scholarship. Unfortunately, most of the scholarships launched in my home country require one year of work experience, which reduces your aspirations to apply as soon as you have completed your bachelor studies, even considering these studies in Bolivia last five years. This drawback event helped me to understand that if I want to fulfil my dreams there was no other solution than to study abroad by myself and with the economic support of my family. Since I am here in Germany, I had the opportunity to be part of Prof. Heinrich’s group. Their research is focused on Medicinal Chemistry with topics like carbofluorination reactions. Prof. Heinrich has given me a comfortable environment to work, and my colleagues are a scientific family who are always willing to share knowledge and advice. I have been part of seminar discussions of organic total synthesis of some active substances and natural products. There, I found a space to be immersed in a wide spread of acknowledgment so I could start shaping my scientific career. Now, I have many projects in mind and I am also looking forward to getting a PhD position once I finish my Master degree so I can continue building my academic life.

What is the coolest project you have worked on and why?

In my home country during my last year of my Bachelor in Chemistry, I have spent three months working in a scientific institution where I could get knowledge of the use of many of the technical instruments that chemists use to elucidate organic structures. The person in charge, Dr. Marcelo Bascope, is used to giving the interns the opportunity to perform scientific projects during their stay there, which I consider a good opportunity to start with your own scientific project and see your limitations and strengths working in a lab. I decided to carry out the identification of active principles from Nicotiana Glauca, a medicinal plant native from South America, which has as main component the alkaloid anabasine. I spent a month working at this project but the most rewarding experience I had was the freedom to perform every step from sample preparation up to purification and identification using the equipment to elucidate the structure of each component. The satisfaction to complete everything by myself helped me to realise that I was meant to work in a lab. This was the first close experience at the lab doing research. The freedom to work on my own increased my self-confidence, because there was no one telling me what to do or putting pressure on me. It was only me and my research growing day by day like a baby becoming an adult.

Take risks in scientific life.

What’s a time you felt immense pride in yourself/your work?

When I was admitted to a Master’s degree programme at Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen I was really proud of all I did so far to get an education abroad. Germany is the country for scientific opportunities. I have been here for only six months and I am part of a research team, a PhD student Anna Pirzer (whom I collaborated with in the lab and who gave me freedom to pursue my own ideas) and I are going to publish a research article. I am proud of myself, of everything I have done to pursue a scientific career, every obstacle I had to overcome to achieve my goals and for all the work that lies ahead.

What is a “day in the life” of Eva like?

After I wake up, I organise everything to go to my master lectures and I prepare my material of studies. Every Thursday of the week I am part of discussion in a seminar session related to total organic synthesis in Prof. Heinrich’s group, so I can polish and hone my organic synthesis skills through wide mechanisms of reactions used to synthesise complex molecules. During the afternoon, if I don’t have any lectures to attend I go to the library to look for some books to study for the upcoming examinations or I just stay the whole afternoon studying in the library with some friends or alone. During the evening, I write some e-mails to my professors and colleagues from my home university keeping in contact with them and sharing science in some way while I enjoy hearing instrumental music. My favourites are movie soundtracks. I am fond into Hans Zimmer compositions.

What are you seeking to accomplish in your career?

My scientific aspirations in science are not related to immortalising my name, not even to economic ambitions. I have a big desire to follow an academic career. Nothing is more rewarding than to share and receive knowledge. I have a deep desire to become a Professor and to have my own research group, with active students performing activities regarding science and discussing breakthroughs in chemistry. I have always been interested in discussing and sharing ideas, even during my bachelor studies I used to organise out-of-the-classroom lectures prepared by myself and my colleagues to encourage our understanding of chemistry. At that time, we were aware that our bachelor program and lab courses didn’t provide the same knowledge in some areas of chemistry compared to cutting-edge universities in science.

What do you like to do when you’re not doing research?

My daily activities are not limited to study. I devote my free day doing out-door activities like hiking or taking a walk in the city, it keeps me motivated and I find equilibrium between my scientific life and my personal life. I love writing poems and thoughts as well. During the weekend, me and my master partners go to some events in Germany, go to shopping or run cultural meetings by sharing our typical food. Most of the time, I am with my “German family”. Since my childhood, I had the opportunity to grow up under a constant influence of German culture. I maintain relationship with people who belong to Missionskreis Ayopaya, an institution that is directly connected to Bolivia through German volunteering.

I am pretty sure, the understanding of origin of life through chemistry laws would be the next breakthrough in science.

What advice do you have for other women interested in science/chemistry?

Take risks in scientific life. Don’t be shy or afraid to express your own ideas even if you are mistaken. Try your best in everything you perform and overcome fear of complexities, of academic inferiority, of the unknown and of failure. Trust yourself and keep on moving even when it means that you only advance little by little. Scientific research has obstacles and the time one invests may extend too many years but the results are a lifetime achievement, a satisfaction that your ideas could encourage the welfare of humanity and the development of one’s country. This fills you with happiness. We are not Marie Curies – of course not. It is time that we write our own history in science!

In your opinion, what will be the next great breakthrough in science/chemistry?

Regarding my particular interests in organic synthesis, we always have to deal with chiral molecules which are present in nature as single enantiomers. I have completed my bachelor thesis in mathematics related to group and graph theories in order to simplify our understanding of symmetry in organic molecules through mathematics. Unfortunately, it is not simple to reach a general explanation. Most of the complex molecules of life are chiral so there is no way to apply these mathematical models to them. I am pretty sure, the understanding of origin of life through chemistry laws would be the next breakthrough in science.

the number of women who don’t show interest in academic careers has increased

What should be done to increase the number of female scientists and female professors?

Since I have been in Germany for six months, I have realised that there is no big gap between women and men pursuing a scientific career. Both have the same opportunities and support in the first stage of their scientific careers. The numbers of women are even bigger in PhD research groups compared to men, according to my experience working in the lab. Over the last few years, the gap has been narrowed considerably in developed countries. Nevertheless, the number of women who don’t show interest in academic careers has increased. I think that there are still some prejudices related to the balance between family and academia in women’s lives – that is another reason why some women speed up their graduate studies in order to get a stable position at the university before deciding to have a family. There must be some guarantee that a woman who decides to have children could continue in the same charge after taking a semester off, but, unfortunately, women cannot recover the same opportunities they had before they decided to start a family. Universities or academic institutions must adopt special programmes or work-family policies to support women who decide to start a family before getting tenure and not put their later chances at risk.

One of the things I love about Lindau is that it is truly diverse and inclusive. This is the case from a disciplinary point of view, in that although this is a chemistry meeting, non-chemists are welcome – physicists, material scientists, engineers, and even maths-maniacs are encouraged to apply and attend. And Lindau is also diverse from a national standpoint – there are nerds from all over the world here. 80 countries are represented, as are numerous cultures, languages, religions and experiences.

On Monday morning, I had the privilege of attending the breakfast of the African delegation, a group of approximately 40 students and postdocs from many countries across all of Africa, including Senegal, Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa, Sudan, and Kenya. As we dined on fresh orange juice and fried eggs, I got chatting with a few young scientists who hail from Kenya, including Titus Masese, who is a Research Scientist at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan.

Based in Osaka, Masese, 33, has lived in Japan since he was 18 years old, when he was recruited to attend Kyoto University as a Japanese Government Scholar, a programme that brings talented Kenyan students to Japan. At Kyoto U, he received his Bachelors in materials science and engineering and his Masters and PhD in electrochemistry. He is fluent is Japanese, Swahili, Kisii (a traditional language from the region of Kenya in which he grew up) and English.

Masese, whose presence at Lindau is supported by both AIST and a Horst-Köhler-Fellowship (supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung), and whose research focus is in energy storage (rechargeable batteries), spent some time speaking with me about his enthusiasm for attending Lindau. We also discussed the many bi-directional, multinational opportunities that can be leveraged for African scientific efforts in support of African innovators across the continent and across the world.

This is an especially important time for channels of communication to be expanded as it relates to financial support of science, no matter where in the world we pursue our work. As Masese notes, it is crucial for people from African nations to attend Lindau, because “in terms of science and technology, there is a lot of research in Africa, but it is not as well know, and it is not being [leveraged],” he says. “The Lindau Meeting is the right platform to showcase the research and to find collaborators so that we can further advance the work. Scientists in some countries in Africa don’t get enough funding from their governments, so they come to Lindau, and perhaps can get more funding as well as opportunities for partnerships.”

Africa is the cradle of mankind, and African researchers and research institutions are known world leaders in many areas of STEM, he shares, including anthropology, mineralogy, agriculture, horticulture and energy storage. And yet, “even with the abundance of natural resources and brilliant minds, there’s just not enough research funding,” he says.

In Masese’s native Kenya, chemistry research and application has led to major insights and innovation in the field and beyond, he says. For example, Kenyan chemists apply their chemistry knowhow to solve problems related to designing drugs to combat tropical diseases such as cholera and malaria, and in the field of anthropology, chemists collaborate with scientists around the world on projects involving carbon dating of artefacts. Geochemists here use their talents to understand, find and characterise minerals. There are also cutting-edge investigations being conducted on designing compounds that can absorb and remove carcinogenic pollutants, such as lead and arsenic, from water and other resources, and on tackling radioactive waste disposal.

Another area he is closely following is African research in the energy sector. “Energy storage and finding energy solutions is a global crisis,” he says. “I think African governments recognise this. They also recognise there is more work to be done in this area. So I encourage government representatives to speak with scientists and engineers in their nations, and leverage that talent and knowhow to make a greater impact in finding common-sense energy solutions.”

Although Masese is not working with Kenyan researchers at this time, he would certainly like to do so in the future if the funding is available and timing is right. He regularly interfaces with the Kenyan Embassy in Japan, and recently had lunch with the Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Solomon K. Maina, who “is appreciative of the work that Kenyans in Japan do,” he says.

Masese is optimistic that opportunity for strengthening national, international, and intercontinental partnerships for African scientists worldwide will emerge from strategic networking. “The Kenyans and Africans I’ve met say the same thing, whether they are from Senegal or Nigeria or live in other countries: we should form networks to unite together to do something for the African continent in terms of research.” Tools such as Facebook groups dedicated to fostering alliances between African scholars are helpful in this regard, serving as just one mechanism to bind together innovators who are scattered across the world but are members of the African diaspora. “I have met people in different fields and they are not being funded by African governments,” he adds. “We can form collaborations as we try to find ways to convince our governments to support important research.”

The future is bright for Africa’s scientific enterprises, and for Masese himself, who next year will be evaluated for a permanent position at AIST. One of the goals of some of Kenyan expats in Japan is to create a new research institution in Kenya. “We want to build one single institute that will do multidisciplinary research, and do cutting edge work that will be of benefit to the entire African community,” he says.

And his presence at Lindau is playing a role in inspiring him to think big. “We could build an African Young Scientist Summit, like the Lindau Meeting and similar conferences in Asia,” he says with a smile. “There is a lot of interesting research being done in Africa, despite the fact that there are not as many resources being devoted to these scholars. But there is a way to open it to the world, with meetings like Lindau. This meeting can make a difference and serve as an enzyme to advance scientific research across Africa.”

Climate change is a common lecture topic at the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings. At the opening of the 67th Lindau Meeting, William E. Moerner presented the keynote speech prepared by Steven Chu, 1997 Nobel Laureate in physics and former U.S. Secretary of Energy. In his speech, Chu described how clean energy technologies provide an insurance policy against the societal risks of climate change.

At previous meetings, Nobel Laureates Mario Molina, Paul J. Crutzen, and F. Sherwood Rowland have detailed how greenhouse gases produced by burning fossil fuels alter atmospheric chemistry and warms the planet. Reducing greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide emissions, is key to stopping the planet’s warming temperature. But instead of viewing carbon dioxide as a problem, what happens if it is also part of a solution to climate change?

Research discussed by Nobel Laureates and young scientists at the 67th Lindau Meeting included ways to use carbon dioxide as a renewable source of synthetic fuel and useful chemicals. Currently, fuels and chemicals come from refined and processed oil and natural gas. Producing these compounds from carbon dioxide captured from the atmosphere or factory emissions could be environmentally sustainable because carbon dioxide released during production or consumption is recycled to make new fuel or material. Sustainable and renewable feedstocks are one aspect of green chemistry, a key topic at this year’s meeting.

During a science breakfast hosted by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science, Research, and Economy on Tuesday morning, Bernard L. Feringa, 2016 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, outlined three challenges for carbon capture and utilisation: separating carbon dioxide from other gases, efficiently concentrating it, and catalytically converting the inert molecule to useful fuel and chemicals.

In addition to his Nobel-winning work on molecular machines, Feringa also studies catalysis. While working at Shell in the early 1980s, he developed lithium catalysts to reduce carbon dioxide. The project ended after a couple of years, however, when the researchers realised they would need all the lithium in the world just to make a reasonable amount of fuel.

Since then, researchers around the world have developed various electrochemical and photothermal catalysts that reduce carbon dioxide into compounds such as carbon monoxide, formic acid, ethylene and methane. Several young scienists attending the meeting are studying these catalysts, and two presented their work during the poster session.

Biswajit Mondal, at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, studies the mechanism of iron-porphyrin electrocatalysts for carbon dioxide reduction. With an understanding of the precise molecular changes during every step of the reduction reaction, researchers can then tailor the catalyst structure to enhance the reaction efficiency.

Dayne F. Swearer, at Rice University, combines two reactive functions in one aluminum nanoparticle to unlock new catalytic mechanisms for known reactions. In his nanoparticles, the aluminium core absorbs light and generates an energy carrier called a plasmon, which can alter and enhance the activity of a metal catalyst on the outside of the nanoparticle. For example, a particle with a shell of copper oxide its aluminium core reduces carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide faster and more efficiently than particles made of either material alone.

Back at the science breakfast, Feringa encouraged young scientists to investigate photoredox catalysts that reduce carbon dioxide using absorbed light energy. These catalysts can create a variety of reactive intermediates, including radical anions and cations, which could be used to add carbon dioxide to hydrocarbons. Such reactions provide renewable ways to make building blocks for plastics and other common polymers.

Renewable routes to acrylic acid, the building block of acrylate polymers common in dental work, are interesting to Anna Eibel, a young scientist at the Graz University of Technology in Austria and a speaker at the science breakfast. She develops new molecules to induce acrylate polymerisation with light at longer wavelengths than the ultraviolet used now.

To really address carbon dioxide emissions, however, renewable routes to synthetic fuels such as methane and methanol are needed. In 1998, George Olah, the 1994 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, talked about synthetic methanol production from carbon dioxide at the 48th Lindau Meeting, and the topic reappeared at the science breakfast this year.

Chemists are in a unique position to advance renewable fuels and chemicals, Feringa said. The main research questions in this area involve problems of catalysis, electrochemistry, photochemistry, material synthesis and chemical conversions. Feringa encouraged the young scientists to take opportunities to tackle these questions. “Of course you may contribute only a small step, but of course we have to do it. It is our duty to society […] to open opportunities for the future.”

When scientific issues become publicly controversial, Nobel Laureates have a history of making strong statements at the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, starting at the second meeting in 1955. There, eighteen laureates signed the first Mainau Declaration urging world leaders to not use nuclear weapons. The second Mainau declaration, signed by 36 laureates at the 65th Lindau Meeting in 2015 and by 40 additional laureates soon after, encouraged government leaders to take action to minimize the risks of climate change.

And this year, Laureates, young scientists and former science diplomats made their position known about speaking up when “alternative facts” drive unpredictable political changes in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. “Scientists cannot ignore what is happening in the world,” Countess Bettina Bernadotte auf Wisborg, President of the Council of the Lindau Meetings, said in her speech opening the 67th Lindau Meeting this year. “Some rulers, and people, seem to feel threatened by progress and the fact-oriented power of science.”

Last year, a volatile electorate voted for Britain to leave the European Union, leaving non-British EU nationals working in the country concerned about losing their jobs. Earlier this year, US President Trump withdrew the country’s support from the Paris Accord, an international treaty signed by 195 members of the United Nations agreeing to take action to mitigate climate change.

This year it seems politics are a common topic during informal gatherings at Lindau, with young researchers asking international colleagues about their experiences, seeking to better understand situations behind the headlines. Conversations about science and politics continued with a discussion for the media about today’s post-truth era hosted by Deutsche Welle on Monday afternoon.

Although public questioning of scientific information is particularly widespread today, alternative facts can be found even during the Renaissance, said Helga Nowotny, Vice-President of the Council for the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings and former president of the European Research Council, Austria. “We have never lived in a truth era.”

When science and politics intersect, a natural part of the scientific method – that scientific facts are not determined forever — presents a challenge for the perceptions of scientific truthfulness. Even when a large consensus of scientists agrees about a particular position, such as humanity’s role in climate change, the iterative process of science leaves uncertainty that some politicians can use to support their efforts to gather more votes. “Elections have become very close to marketing campaigns,” said Arturo Borja, Director of International Cooperation at the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) in Mexico.

Marketing campaigns can trigger skepticism and critical analysis, leading to a general public distrust of politicians. Scientists, however, still have the public’s trust: More than 75% of Americans trust scientists to act in the public interest, while less than 50% have a similar trust in elected officials, according to a 2016 report from the Pew Research Center. But when politics makes it seem like the public is losing confidence in science, how do scientists help rebuild that trust?

Two suggestions arose during the discussion:

Citizen science projects, where non-scientists help scientists do research, are one way to help the public learn about the process of science by engaging with it themselves. These projects are also a way for scientists to give back to society, said Melania Zauri, a young scientist from Italy working at the Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

In communication courses, Marian Nkahsah, a young scientist from Kwame Knrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana, learned how to identify her audience so she can speak directly to them. Scientists’ voices should be as loud as those who are propagating lies, she said.

William E. Moerner, 2014 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and professor at Stanford University encouraged other scientists to talk to their friends and family about the scientific method. He also speaks publically, including at the March for Science in San Jose, California. He said speaking from an established connection of shared humanity could help break down barriers to misinformation.

“Science is not an alternative fact,” Moerner said. “It is something we have to use if we want to push our future forward.”

Interview with #LiNo17 young scientist Hannah Noa Barad

This interview is part of a series of interviews of the “Women in Research” blog that features young female scientists participating in the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, to increase the visibility of women in research (more information for and about women in science by “Women in Research” on Facebook and Twitter). Enjoy the interview with Hannah and get inspired.

Hannah Noa Barad, 30, from Israel is a PhD Student at the Bar Ilan University, Israel. Her research is in the field of renewable energy, specifically solar energy and solar cells. The method she uses in her research is combinatorial material science and high-throughput analysis to discover new metal oxides and utilise them in all-oxide based solar cells. She also focuses on understanding the mechanisms behind the photovoltaic activity of the new solar cells.

What inspired you to pursue a career in science/chemistry?

As a child, I was always very curious about the world around me, this was the driving force that pushed me to learn and study as much as I could. When I got older I realised that in order to understand the world we live in I must study science, because it helps us discover the secrets of our world. I always loved chemistry because of the beautiful reactions that take place and so I chose to pursue chemistry in higher education. I later also understood that chemistry is a field in science that incorporates many other sciences like physics, biology, etc. so that I can continue to expand my knowledge in other scientific areas.

Who are your role models?

My role models are all the women who strove over the years to improve science, even when it was a career that was frowned upon for women. I admire their courage and abilities, and how they shaped the scientific world into accepting them as equals and even more. It is because of these women that I am able to freely pursue my goals and ideas, and hopefully improve our world.

in order to understand the world we live in I must study science

How did you get to where you are in your career path?

It took a lot of hard work to get to where I am today in my career. The directions I chose were influenced by my family, who always pushed me to follow my dreams. I am also supported by my supervisor Prof. Arie Zaban, who taught me never to give up even when nothing seems to be working.

What is the coolest project you have worked on and why?

I’d like to say that all the projects I worked on are very cool – I love what I do! If I had to choose one project it would be the plasmonic ‘hot’ electron effect I discovered in one of my solar cells. I was examining the effect of one of the layers on the solar cell performance, and as a result I found out that a whole different mechanism governed the photovoltaic behaviour; this was the ‘hot’ electron effect.

What’s a time you felt immense pride in yourself/your work?

Whenever I reach a milestone in my work, which could be getting a degree, publishing a paper, etc, I feel very proud and accomplished, mainly because this also means that the people supporting me can also be proud!

What is a “day in the life” of Hannah Noa like?

I usually get to the lab around 8:30 to 9 am and then I see what I have planned for the day. If I need to do some experiments, I make sure I have everything ready and prepared; if I need to analyse data, I make a list of what needs to be done and start working on it. I usually end up helping other people in the lab throughout the day, be it advice or brain-storming about a research project, editing their manuscripts or even helping them perform experiments of their own. Our lab members always eat lunch together, and we usually try to keep it for getting updated with each other. I leave the lab between 5 and 6 pm, and head home to eat dinner and relax. Sometimes I hang out with friends or go to cultural events as well.

What are you seeking to accomplish in your career?

I would like to be a better scientist and help improve the planet we live on through the research and work I do. For me, making our world a better place to live in is highly important, and I think that everyone should be treated well and get a chance at living. So for me it is important to improve my skills and as a result all that surrounds me to make the required steps at a better world.

It is because of these women that I am able to freely pursue my goals and ideas, and hopefully improve our world.

What do you like to do when you’re not doing research?

I have many hobbies including playing music, drawing and doing arts. I also like to meet up with my friends and have fun experiences together, like concerts, field trips and even escape rooms.

What advice do you have for other women interested in science/chemistry?

My advice to women interested in science and chemistry is not to give up on your dreams! It is hard but it is worth it! Try your best, prove yourself, believe in yourself and in your capabilities, because you are highly capable, and being a woman only brings out the best qualities for being a scientist!

In your opinion, what will be the next great breakthrough in science/chemistry?

This is a great question and it can have many answers. I personally hope the next breakthrough will be in the area of electrical vehicles, finding a better battery that is more stable, cheaper and compact to be used in cars today. I think a breakthrough in this area can move our society forward and help reduce and even eradicate many issues we have with ruining the environment.

What should be done to increase the number of female scientists and female professors?

In my opinion, to increase the number of female scientists and professors a few things need to be done:

(1) more scholarships for women in science and research, which will help motivate women to come to these fields

(2) Improve the conditions for women so that they can have families and a career as well, such as having day care in universities until late hours etc.

(3) The various scientific faculties in all the universities should have academic positions intended only for women, to which men cannot apply to at all. This will help increase the number of women professors, who will in turn teach women students. The students will see women professors and they will become motivated themselves since they see that this goal can be achieved, and they will push harder in their scientific fields, to become better and motivate more women to study.

“The quality of students has improved enormously:” In 2015, Nobel Laureate Edmond Fischer spoke to science historian Ralph Burmester about his first experience of the Lindau Meetings and their development since the early 1990s. ow.ly/8BFy30iqohF@DeutschesMuseum#LiNo15